Uuden tuotekonseptin kehittämismenetelmä olemassa oleville markkinoille

Concept creation is the starting step of any new product development project. A feasible and well-designed concept gives the possibility of creating new innovative products that are competitive in the market. Not all concepts materialize into new products. Usually multiple concepts need to be created thus having an efficient process for concept creation is beneficial. Being able to create products that are cost efficient and satisfy customer needs bring competitive advantage against competitors. This thesis is done to create a documented concept creation process for a company. The company is a globally operating mechanical machinery manufacturer. The goal was to have a process where a structured approach is used for concept creation. The process was constructed as a combination of the methods reviewed in a literature review. These methods include product development methods, facilitation methods and innovation methods. Also risk management literature and factors of competitive advantage were reviewed. The need for the new product concept originated from the case company’s needs to create a new product to replace an old one. The current product has been in the market for a long time and the company felt a new product is needed to gain more market share. As the original need for the concept was business based, the customer’s needs were mapped in order to align them with the business’s needs. The new concept creation process was tested by conducting a case study where a new concept was created. The creation process included mapping customer requirements, interviewing relevant personnel in the case company to gather information, creating and refining ideas in idea sessions, evaluating the new concept and creating a risk analysis. With the new process, a new concept was created successfully though some design work was still needed for the concept to move towards to the next steps in development. The current processes in the case company were mapped and compared to the new concept creation process. Suggestions were given to include the used methods to the current development process as the current process does not include any practical tools for designers to use in concept development